Welcome to The Real Outback

The Real Outback is a four wheel drive (a.k.a. 4WD) tour company with a focus on the arid lands and rangelands of Australia. The Real Outback offers catered and Tag-Along safaris in the Outback. Combined with a choice of trips and interpretation born of 40 years of experience, these 4WD trips will satisfy the traveler, adventurer and explorer in you.

Amazing landscapes and destinations off the beaten track can be expected.

Be charmed by campfires, good food, cosy swags, a zillion stars and a communion with nature. In-depth perspectives and commentary, fascinating routes and the journey of a lifetime are provided in a small group setting.

Big skies, red dirt, amazing vistas: The Real Outback !

More information

We use modern, up-to-date 4WD's, comprehensively modified for Outback conditions and we tow a heavy duty, specially modified supply trailer.

On a daily basis we rotate seats so that you can get a fresh perspective and view.

The days of 'roughing it' are well behind us.........we sleep on stretchers in swags with sheets, doonas and mozzie nets, so we can assure you complete comfort. We use chairs and stools, and eat at a set table with ample lighting. We call this style 'glamping'. (glamping.Slang. Luxury camping involving a variety of high-end gear, accessories, and amenities. The term is a contraction of the words glamour and camping. )

You are on a fully catered journey. Cooking is essentially done on a campfire and the menu is varied. Special dietary needs are accommodated. Naturally, we have refrigeration and a wine cellar to look after the inner person.

The Flinders Ranges, SA.

Touring in our specially modified 4WD and supply trailer

OUTBACK defined (1)

"Outback is of course an Australian word meaning backcountry.

There is an implication of remoteness and sparse population. There is also, behind the word, an implication that very little in the human sense happens there and what does happen can be slow and un-dramatic.Nothing could be less true. It is as if in the immensity of outback Australia peoples temperaments expand like yeast to occupy and give point to the immensities of space."

Thomas Keneally, author.

OUTBACK defined (2)

The Outback could be loosely defined as the outer perimeter of the orange coloured desert section of this Koeppen climate map of Australia.

The Outback is the vast, remote, arid area of Australia; the term colloquially can refer to any lands outside the main urban areas. The term 'The Outback' is generally used to refer to locations that are comparatively more remote than those areas named 'the bush'. Grasslands, shrublands, woodlands and savannas in arid and semi-arid, temperate and tropical areas constitute the The Outback.

Apart from Antarctica, Australia is the driest continent in the world. About 35 per cent of the continent receives so little rain, it is effectively desert. In total, 70 per cent of the mainland receives less than 500 millimetres of rain annually, which classes it as arid, or semi-arid.

Australia's deserts, listed below, are distributed throughout the western plateau and interior lowlands. The total desert area equates to 18 per cent of the total mainland area of Australia.

State/TerritoryNamearea in km2percentage of AustraliaWA, SA Great Victoria 348,750 4.5WA Great Sandy 267,250 3.5WA, NT Tanami 184,500 2.4NT, QLD, SA Simpson 176,500 2.3WA Gibson 156,000 2.0WA Little Sandy 111,500 1.5SA, QLD, NSW Strzelecki 80,250 1.0SA, QLD, NSW Sturt Stony 29,750 0.3SA Tirari 15,250 0.2SA Pedirka 1, 250 less than 0.1----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Total 1,371,000 18Source: Geoscience Australia Deserts databaseOwing to the low and erratic rainfall over most of The Outback, combined with soils which are usually not very fertile, inland Australia is relatively sparsely settled. Other than agriculture and tourism, the main economic activity in this vast area is mining.